Category Archives: Propagation & Dividing

To Propagate Evergreens

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A simple propagation method for many garden club members to do in preparation for AGC’s plant sale next spring.  

 This Information was taken out of an older August Sunset Magazine Article: 

“To propagate evergreens:  Take 5” cuttings of azalea, camellia, daphne, euonymus, holly, or rhododendron.  Strip off all but the top three or four leaves, dip cut ends into rooting hormone, then plant in 4” pots.  Put them in a bright, sheltered spot, and keep moist.  In spring, you’ll have rooted plants”.  

Growing Shiitake Mushrooms

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An article in the Medford Mail Tribune’s January’s HOMELIFE magazine inspired me to order shittake mushroom spawn from www.mushroompeople.com.I called several tree pruners before I could obtain five white oak logs for growing the mushrooms, each logs was about 4-5 feet long and 4″-6″ inches in diameter. My husband drilled holes in them every 6″ and then we hammered in the pegs with the shiitake spawn. I didn’t use any wax to seal the holes as suggested, I just hammered the pegs in and called it good. Like the article says, all the work is done in a day, and then you just lean the logs in the shade, water them when it gets really hot and wait to see what happens.

by Melody Jones

Read the Homelife article here: http://www.mailtribune.com/HOMELIFE/mushrooms

Ready Your Greenhouse!

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It time to get your greenhouseready for February planting.

  • Make sure the shelves are clean (use a bit of bleach mixed with water)
  • Wash your trays too
  • Purchase your seedling mix
  • Have a gentle water source ready
  • Assemble plant labels and permanent markers in your greenhouse

Let’s use May 1st as the last frost date, so February 16th will be 10 weeks until then: Fill your trays with seedling mix, water them thoroughly, and let them sit until the next day to warm up. You can now plant cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, beets, lettuce, cilantro and spinach.

Here is a list of flowers you can also plant in February in your GREENHOUSE; they need 8-12 weeks before the last frost date.

Petunias, impatiens, lobelia, lupine, echinacea, rudbeckia, coreopsis, salvia, lavender, scabies, delphinium, pansies, shasta daisy, forget me nots, gaillardias, nasturtiums…to name a few.

Make sure you read the package instructions of each plant.

When your GARDEN SOIL is ready, not too wet and breaks apart in your hands like chocolate cake, DIRECTLY SOW : peas, radishes, arugula and carrots. Transplant your greenhouse plants into individual pots, then hardened them off, after this you can plant them into your garden. There is no thinning this way and you get to put the plants exactly where they will grow for the season.

Keep your plants watered, the cold air will suck out the moisture if not watered. You can heat your greenhouse with a bathroom heater if you have no other heat, that’s what I do. You can also purchase a heating mat from a garden supply company.

Melody Jones

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Hardening off… “exposing your seedlings to outside conditions incrementally, over the course of six to fourteen days, depending on your patience, the temperature and the fragility of your seedlings.”….. Read more on how to harden off plants here:
http://Hardeningoff.htm
Link

January 2012: Horticulture Report

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Plectranthus ecklonii is a sub-tropical plant from Africa which can be grown outdoors in Zones 9-11, but in colder climates it’s grown as a house plant.

P. ecklonii is an attractive fast growing plant which flowers profusely the first season after planting. The plant should be pruned back hard in mid-winter after its flowering season.

P. ecklonii is easily propagated from cuttings or seed.

The best time to take cuttings is spring or summer. Cuttings should be about 7 inches to 10 inches long, keeping the top leaves. Place cuttings in a shady, but well lit area, keeping them moist as rooting is rapid. Cuttings can be rooted in sand or other appropriate cutting medium.

P. ecklonii seeds can be planted in a shallow standard seed tray in standard soil. Cover with a thin layer of sand and keep moist. Keep in a shady, but well lit environment. Germination is rapid. The seedlings can be planted in individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle.

There are three P. ecklonii cultivars:

1. P. ecklonii ‘Medley-Wood’, which is the common garden cultivar with blue flowers

2. P. ecklonii ‘Tommy’, with white flowers

3. P. ecklonii ‘Erma’, with pink flowers

Read more here:
http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantnop/plectranecklon.htm

Timely Tips for Dividing Plants

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·Study the plant you wish to divide. Is it a good candidate for root division?Does it grow from the outside of its root clump? Does it make new bulbs? Does it make suckers?

·Figure out where you want to put the divisions and prepare ground, have pots and soil ready.

·Use shovel to dig around the plant to be removed. Use spading forks to lift and separate the clumps. With offshoots use clippers to cut umbilical root.Cut 1/3 tops off. For roots to be separated, wash off dirt enough to see where the eyes, plantlets are so each new division has new growth.

·Keep moist and plant soon in new location. Fertilize every other week until mid-summer then stop to let plant harden off for winter. Keep well weeded and mulched.

·For most plants late winter early spring is the optimum time to divide.For bulbs, primrose, iris, divide after bloom.For peonies fall is best.

·You can divide horse radish, rhubarb and French terragon

·Plants not easily divided: needled and non-needled evergreens (azalea, Rhodies, holly, laurel), many trees,blueberry,annuals, some perennials with single tap roots.

REFERENCE:

Secrets of Plant Propagation by Lewis Hill(a paperback)